Japan nuclear crisis: Britons promised free flights home

Britons affected by the Japanese disaster will be flown home free of charge on
charter planes from Tokyo, the Government announced today.

The first option for leaving Japan should remain commercial routesPhoto: REX FEATURES

7:52AM GMT 17 Mar 2011

Flights from the capital to Hong Kong will be laid on to help those who wish to leave the stricken country, and passengers will be able to travel back to Britain from there, the Foreign Office (FCO) said.

The offer of help came hours after Britons were advised to consider leaving Tokyo amid desperate attempts by the Japanese to prevent meltdown at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant.

The plant has been rocked by a series of explosions and fires since Friday's 9.0-magnitude earthquake and tsunami.

Updating its travel advice, the FCO said: ''We continue to advise against all non-essential travel to Tokyo and north-eastern Japan and that British nationals currently in Tokyo and to the north of Tokyo should consider leaving the area.

''The UK government is chartering flights from Tokyo to Hong Kong to supplement commercially available options for those wishing to leave Japan.''

The first option for leaving Japan should remain commercial routes, which continue to operate to and from Japan, they added.

There will be no charge for British nationals and their immediate families who were ''directly affected'' by the tsunami, the FCO said.

The plights of Britons will be assessed on a case-by-case basis according to the personal trauma they have suffered.

Those deemed to have been directly affected could include those who were in the area of the disaster as well as those who have suffered a bereavement or lost all their possessions, the FCO said.

For those who were not directly affected, there will be a charge of £600 per person for the chartered flights.

Military helicopters today sprayed seawater on to damaged reactors at Fukushima Dai-ichi as they battled to bring the emergency under control.

The efforts to cool reactors came as US officials warned of a shortage of water in a storage pool meant to stop nuclear fuel rods from overheating.

Early today the FCO urged Britons to remain outside an 80km (50 mile) radius of the plant ''as an additional precautionary measure''.

It said the call was in line with the US government's advice to its citizens in Japan.

In a statement, the FCO said: ''We urge British nationals to observe the advice being given by Japanese authorities, including the 20km (12.5 mile) exclusion zone around the Fukushima facility and to remain indoors, keep windows and doors closed and not use ventilation if you are between 20km and 30km (18.75 miles) from the facility.

''If you are currently between 30km and 80km from the facility, we advise you to leave the area or take shelter indoors if you are unable to travel.

''For people within 80km of the Fukushima nuclear facility, please contact the Foreign Office Japan emergency hotline on +44 20 7008 0000 for further advice.''

Six days after the disaster, more than 5,300 people are officially listed as dead, but officials believe the toll will climb to well over 10,000.

Police say more 452,000 people are staying in schools and other shelters, as supplies of fuel, medicine and other necessities run short.